Just to be clear about the meaning of technical terms… A walk on refers to a non-recruited athlete. In other words that athlete does not get any help from the coach during the admissions process. A non-recruited athlete is not eligible for athletic scholarship at the D1 level. But a walk on can be told by the coach ahead of time, if you get into the school on your own (without taking a recruiting slot) we’re happy to have you on the team or at least happy to have you try out for the team.
If your son gets into a D1 school without any help from a coach, he may be able to walk onto the fencing team even without a rating or ranking. We have a friend who did this at Penn State. Penn State recruits highly ranked/rated fencers. But it can add in other fencers who already happen to be at the school and aren’t getting athletic scholarship money. In this situation, your son probably wouldn’t get a lot of competition time, but would be practicing with the team and getting all the other benefits of being a D1 athlete.
Just as there is a range of academic/admissions competitiveness at the D1 schools that have fencing, the D3 schools also have a broad range of academic competitiveness. If you find a D3 school that is a good academic fit for your son, it is worth talking to the coach to find out if your son can be recruited. What that would mean at a D3 school is that the coach would help smooth the admissions process. Going through the D3 recruiting process also helps give an inside look into the school and team culture to help determine fit. In my experience, some of the small D3 schools are looking to fill out their rosters and are happy to have experienced fencers that can also academically perform at the school. So don’t give up on going through the recruiting process!
Hi, I’m a junior in highschool and would like to know just a bit more information about the recruitment process. I’m currently in the 70’s for Junior ranking and got 3rd in div2 summer nats ‘23 and top 8 at an SJCC in Juniors. I have good grades, ec’s, and attend a magnet school. I just started messaging div 1 coaches after being in contact with a few div 3 coaches and was wondering if there is any point to this? I feel like my national ranking and results haven’t been good enough. Is there any possibility to fence d1 or will I have to bring my national ranking up before the end of junior year?
You might not love this answer, but . . . it depends.
Look on the rankings to see how many others ahead of you are in your class year–that is your recruiting class. Then look at the rosters of the schools you are considering. How far down the list have they historically recruited? How many spots will they have open your year? This info used to be publicly available on fencing parents website, but I think it might be behind a paywall now. In which case you need to look on each school’s website page with roster info and compare it with historical USA fencing info. Honestly, the best answer will come directly from the coaches. Note that some of the top D3 teams are as competitive as some D1 teams, so it you are getting a great response from top D3 teams (e.g., NYU) it is a good sign.
I don’t know much about this scene, but I did notice that the coach of the USA women’s fencing team, who went on to win gold, is the assistant fencing coach at BC.
Ralf Bissdorf is a truly elite coach and the Boston area fencing scene is very vibrant with a variety of fencing clubs and strong NCAA fencing programs.
Curious is anyone has heard about changes to fencing programs (squad numbers) and recruitment as a result of the recent NCAA ruling on athletes being treated as employees? There are rumors schools have decommitted from fencers for the 2025-2026 season already.
That is not surprising, but I think everything is still very much up in the air as the settlement has been kicked forward. I think this will also vary by conference.
Hi, fencer here. I am wondering as an international student, how would I have to prove ability for selection into a fencing school? I’m asking this since achieving US fencing rankings aren’t really feasible. Do i simply require a high national ranking in my country, or do I need exceptional results at designated international events?
Please note that there is no specific requirement that a fencer have a US rating or US rank. Plenty of international students attend even top fencing schools. Rather, what is necessary is to catch the eye of the fencing coach at the school of interest. There are international ratings (FIE), results at international tournaments, etc., which can do this. So what you are looking to do is to show fencing ability, not any particular US ranking. An unrated (US) fencer who has the ability to compete at the required level for the indicated school certainly has a chance to be recruited. Finally, there also is the ability to walk on if one is accepted at the school for other reasons.
In short, there are many paths to show fencing ability – submission of international results, videos of good matches, results in the home country, etc. Anything that showcases the skill level of the fencer should work.
Finally, don’t overlook contacting coaches and just asking them what kind of information they need.
Depending on your academic aspirations/statistics, I also recommend considering programs that historically recruit international fencers, including OSU and St. John’s. Without significant results, either domestically or internationally, you will be a tough sell to the more competitive programs. Top ranking in your country (depending on which country) may be of interest to some coaches. Also, don’t necessarily put academics behind fencing. Try doing the reverse and see where that leads. There may be schools at which you are competitive and the fencing becomes a nice ‘hook’ to gain admission.
I have had top results in both Australia (my primary residence) and China (my former primary residence). I tend to perform better in China even though talent is higher (for some reason, probably refereeing style). However, I have made the Australian national team. I have yet to secure opportunities for international representation, though I likely will in the future, and only have a few good results domestically.
What results are actually sufficient? I’m thinking about D3s like MIT/NYU/JHU. I have checked their rosters, and I think I would potentially be able to fit there in the future (though I am not sure if they are ahtletic recruits or walk-ons).
On a side note, my academics are quite strong (probably stronger than my fencing), so would this give me chances of D1 schools like the ivies?
I would reach out to coaches at schools of interest. If your academics are strong, then you definitely can leverage this to apply at schools based on your academic record. If you are at a school, most coaches will accept walk-ons. This is not a guarantee of going to tournaments, but would give you an opportunity to show how good you are and let your fencing take you as far as possible. The NCAA has information on qualifying as international athletes. Become an International Student-Athlete - NCAA.org.
It is possible for a coach to put in a good word for you. But this is not the same as being recruited, when a coach is using up a recruiting slot for you. But realistically, what you are doing is including fencing as one of your extra-curricular activities, which helps show that you are a well-rounded applicant who brings a range of skills and attributes to the university. So the most helpful is to be a recruited athlete, then you can get a bit of a boost if a coach puts in a good word for you, but really in this case you are mostly relying on your academics and the attributes you overall bring as an international student applicant.
Hi - good points made by commenters; I would just add that you should be thinking about which schools you really want to attend for reasons other than fencing, i.e., which would be a good choice for you even if you never fenced? If you are super excited about the school and wanting to be there, then you can make that pitch to the coach. You should directly contact coaches at the school(s) you have identified and they can let you know what the options are. Sharing some key academic information (e.g., GPA or test scores) will help them as well.
Good luck!
Hi – I’m a new member to this community who just recently discovered this thread. It is very long and very useful! My daughter is a high school junior saber fencer who is currently going through the college recruiting process. Can any of the forum members give their views on which schools seem to have/give the best/most support to their fencing programs…from the best fencing facilities to the most generous financial support (from their respective schools athletic depts) to improve the programs to the various support services for their fencers (i.e. “perks” that fencers/athletes receive that non-athletes do not)? In other words, at which schools do the fencers have it the “best”? Any firsthand thoughts on Penn, Duke, Northwestern, Brown, Columbia, and Stanford specifically would be much appreciated. Thank you!
I don’t know much about fencing but I would look carefully at how the House vs NCAA settlement might impact these programs going forward, particularly at P4 schools.
@saberdad Feel free to message me directly. I can offer some input. And 100% agree with @TonyGrace comment about keeping an eye on the NCAA settlement. Teams who opt into the settlement and have rosters over 24 (per gender) will cut fencers and moving forward won’t be able to recruit more than 24. Just something to note.
win gold, is the assistant fencing coach at BC.